


The Recipe for Love

by LilacTaeyong



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, Found Family Dynamics, I’ll add more characters as they are mentioned but these are the main ones, Light Angst, M/M, Not Beta Read, forgive my grammar, i guess, well only a little
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:29:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25853644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilacTaeyong/pseuds/LilacTaeyong
Summary: Welcome back to me attempting to write. This story has a whole long backstory about how it was created and thought of that I will put in the end notes if you care to read. Also this story won’t be too angsty bc I really like the characters in the fic and never really planned for anything TOO bad to happen but I thought I’d tag it just Incase.
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Na Jaemin, Mark Lee/Nakamoto Yuta
Kudos: 3





	The Recipe for Love

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome back to me attempting to write. This story has a whole long backstory about how it was created and thought of that I will put in the end notes if you care to read. Also this story won’t be too angsty bc I really like the characters in the fic and never really planned for anything TOO bad to happen but I thought I’d tag it just Incase.

Fat droplets of rain tap on the glass of Jaemin's potion shop with increasing desperation as he continued to scan over spells written in different ancient magic books. In the corner of the room, Mark hums a soft tune as he nurses the low fire keeping the shop from freezing. Usually, Jaemin appreciated the company of his Wizard companion, but today his out of tune rendition of some Beethoven piece was picking at Jaemin's everlasting nerve.

"Don't you have your own shop to run?" The younger groans out, interrupting the older boy's terrible music. He slumps against the arms of his chair in exhaustion as the older lazily looks at him over his left shoulder. 

"You know," he begins in a monotone voice. "If Someone hadn't accidentally disclosed the location of this said shop, I wouldn't have to crash here while the royal wizard council searches through my place for evidence of black magic." He finishes with a lazy smirk before turning around again. He quickly busies himself by going back to feeding the fire twigs and dried leaves. 

Jaemin, knowing all this is true (and his fault), keeps his quiet. He didn't exactly mean to rat the other out, but in his defense, the wizard council wouldn't even have him under investigation if he hadn't sold some random man passing through town a damn death potion. Mark may have been in a drunken stupor (induced by celebratory drinking and a few flower petals Jaemin slipped into his cocktails), but it was not exactly an excuse to break the law. 

But Jaemin loves his friend, so he doesn't hold this situation against him. (Plus the kid felt terrible about it anyway, as much as he tried to cover it up with smugness and sarcasm) 

"What are you even that worked up over anyways?" The older muses, not bothering to face the witch he was attempting to interrogate. "Usually, you're a natural when it comes to magic, especially that lovey-dovey shit you hex those poor mortals with." He huffed out with a breathy laugh. Something about what he said made Jaemin blood boil and his skin prick. This is funny coming from a wizard who can't even cast teleportation spells. 

"First of all, I never claimed to be a natural with anything; we all struggle doofus. And those mortals use my magic on each other just as much as I use it on them, don't make me seem like the bad guy here." Jaemin snapped as he flipped a dusty page of a spellbook that's older than him (2000 is pretty old and Jaemin doesn't like the reminder.)

"Well, you are the one who makes and sells the magic they use, so, technically, you're still the bad guy." Mark reasons. Jaemin closes his eyes for a moment to gather his thoughts. He'll go mad before Mark's stupid wizarding shop is finished being inspected. 

"Whatever." Jaemin hisses in annoyance as he flips yet another useless, faded page of this dated spellbook. He skims the page looking for the origin of his trusty love and beauty potion. 

His love potion that hasn't let him down for over one thousand years, well, until today that is. His love potion was one of the most powerful ones ever recorded in the long history of love spells and attraction hexing. It was so powerful it had every mortal, and even a few weaker wizards and witches wrapped around his fingers. Every human in the land, from east to west, was under his control. 

Except for one. 

And that drove him mad. 

"To answer your question," Jaemin starts, closing the ancient book with a snap of his fingers. "I met someone today an-" before he can finish, he's cut off by a laugh.

"You're this mad about a customer's request? Did some hag ask to receive the looks of a divine queen again?" Mark coos in an annoyingly Mark kind of way. 

"No! Will you let me finish you pig" Jaemin sneers in annoyance, tucking strands of hair behind his red, right ear. 

"I met a boy today. My spell did not affect him. Not at all!" Jaemin blabbered out dramatically. He used his magic to pick up the heavy spellbooks littered around his work station and ushered them into their proper places on the shelves lining each wall of the small room. 

This revelation caught Mark's attention. He swiveled a bit in his chair to face the younger and cock an eyebrow. "None? Are you sure he wasn't a wizard or something?" Mark asked quizzically, pressing his lips in a thin line. 

"I'm sure, one hundred percent sure." Jaemin groaned out as he stalked across the room to his spell pot, nestled above the dying fire. He slowly stirred the thick liquid inside and began to think over that day's happenings. 

The day had started like any other, of course. Jaemin got out of bed, prettied himself up, and applied his favorite love potion. Once he was significantly dolled up, he went out to pick herbs and flowers for one of his latest hit spells. Afterward, he decided to indulge a bit and buy himself a tart. 

He usually isn't one for sweets or eating in human-run establishments for that matter. But today seemed peculiar, and that's precisely what it was. 

When Jaemin was about halfway through his blueberry tart, he noticed something off. At first, it was just a feeling, a slight tick in the atmosphere of the room that sent him into a spiral of panic. Slowly he looked around, everyone in the whole room was looking at him, admiring his soft hair and sweet smile, chatting with one another about his charming face and confident aura. 

Everyone except him, the waiter. Instead of admiring Jaemin's beautiful features like the rest of the small sweets shop, he was working. 

And of course, this immediately made Jaemin assume he was a Wizard or Witch. It was rare that anyone from the spell casting world would choose or be allowed to live as a human among the regular villagers. But occasionally exceptions can be made.

But then Jaemin realized that he hasn't picked up on any magic in the air. Surely and witch or wizard, no matter how unskilled, would have even the smallest bit of magic. This boy, though, had absolutely none. 

Apon this horrifying discovery, Jaemin quickly finished his tart and waited for the waiter to make his way back to Jaemin's single table. It hadn't taken long; by the time he had come back, Jaemin had already compiled a list of compliments and flirty jokes to tell him to sway the slightly darker male into an infatuated state like the rest of the townspeople. 

"Hello, love." Jaemin greeted sweetly as the boy picked up his now empty plate. The boy looked up from the table for a split second and smiled sweetly at Jaemin before looking back down, and sweeping crumbs off the cream table spread. 

Slightly taken aback, Jaemin blinks to himself, regaining his never-ending confidence. 

"You know," Jaemin continued in his deep, sultry voice. "You're beautiful enough to be the twin of the goddess Amicia" He dropped his voice down to a whisper at the last part, leaning in closer to ensure only the waiter boy had heard his sweet words. Softly he tucked a tuff of honey brown hair behind the other boy's ear before leaning back in his chair with a smirk. 

There was no way anyone could have resisted all that charm. Right?

Wrong. The kid simply gave Jaemin a fake smile and mumbled, "Thanks." Before he took up Jaemin's used plates and disappearing behind doors, Jaemin assumed that lead to the kitchen. 

Jaemin had been so distraught over his encounter with this guy he had hurriedly paid for his food and left the Café.

Mark cleared his throat, bringing Jaemin out of his daze. 

"So, some guy didn't instantly fall in love with you, so you're going crazy trying to find a potion recipe strong enough to make him kiss you feet?" Mark clarified. Jaemin nodded, not bothering to acknowledge the elder's dumb antics with more than that. "You're the most ridiculous individual I've ever met," Mark mumbled. Adding another handful of dried herbs and weeds to the base of the fire, trying to nurse the flames.

Jaemin rolled his eyes as he smacked the back of Mark's head. "You're adding the wrong kindling, you know?" Jaemin questioned. The wizard had been out of shop and home for a little over a week, surely not enough time to forget the looks of even the most basic of potion materials. "The herb you're using is the herb of Zind. You know, the death herb? You're practically killing the fire." Jaemin added before he turned away from his distracted friend and his precious fire, he seemed keen on killing. 

Instead, he decided to focus on his original task. He was scanning the spines of books organized neatly on the bookshelf dedicated to Lovecraft. When he spotted a book suspiciously new looking, he reached out to grab it. His fingers tingled as they touched the soft but pristine leather cover. Of course, how could he forget such an essential part of his collection? The book itself had no official name, just a beautifully designed heart etched onto the cover. 

The book had been a gift from his mentor, Joohyun, before she retired from the world of love and potions. She had told him that the book was almost as old as magic itself, being created in the very beginning by a council of the best witches and wizards who practiced Lovecraft. Jaemin has only read over the book once. He hadn't the need for such potent and honestly illegal potions in his past. The two-step beginners' potions had always done decently well for the needs of Jaemin's clientele. Though when they failed, the slightly more complex potions, Joohyun herself had crafted worked wonders. 

Yet here Jaemin was, a millennium after Joohyun had taught him everything she knew and retired, utterly clueless on why he couldn't charm a simple townsperson. 

Ignoring the bubbling frustration in the pit of his stomach, Jaemin walked over to his desk and sat down. Jaemin hesitated before flipping open the cover of the book. This was an Encyclopedia of the most dangerous, potent spells and potions he will ever come into contact with. There is no guarantee that Jaemin even had enough magic in him to make them work. A broken potion is millions of times more dangerous than a correct one after all. 

Pushing back the doubt in the back of his mind, Jaemin opened the book. A look wouldn't hurt after all. Even so he couldn't imagine Joohyun would have given him the book if she thought he was too weak to handle its content. 

As he lifted the spotless grey cover and was faced with the crisp first page, the smell of chamomile and briskwood met Jaemin's nose. It was Joohyun's signature scent. He smiled shyly, thinking about her poise and gentle personality. She was so beautiful even the magically inclined couldn't refuse her. As well as being his mentor, she was also his first love. Jaemin ignored the quickening beats of his heart as he flips to the index, scanning the context of the book quickly. 

He smiled triumphantly as he found the section he was looking for, "Section 8: Encounter infatuation from all beings. Page 500" He quickly flipped to the middle of the book to find the page number given in the index. When he found it, he noticed the beautiful illustration etched into the page. It showed a beautiful witch, several wizards poised at her feet. Though Jaemin knows it couldn't possible be Joohyun considering the book itself had been written far before her birth, but the commanding beauty both witches possess seem to be the same.

Pushing these thoughts aside he instead focused on the potion instructions written on the adjacent page. It was written in something akin to the elder language, perhaps the origin of even the earliest known written word. Of course, the book was so old the language it was written in was almost impossible to understand. He sighed loudly and got up from the spot where he sat. He could feel Mark's curious gaze as Jaemin stomped out of the room. He had a translation key, something he had bought when he traveled through the city ruins of Ywevel. Unfortunately, it was at the very bottom of one of the many chests Jaemin had in his cramped storage room. "This is what I get," Jaemin said, chastising himself. "Why do I even care what One stupid townsperson thinks? For all, I know he could be immune to magic." He pauses at the last part. He'd never met such a person. They had been spoken about by elder spell casters, said to be the only reason the magically inclined didn't rule over the whole world. 

But the only people immune to magic in modern times are royals. Anyone without pure royal blood could not possibly be immune to magic. This thought soothes the young witch again. There is no possible way a royal would be taking orders in a café on the outskirts of the royal city. Laughing at the thought, Jaemin started looking over all the locked chests, deducing which ones could hold the translation key. 

______________

It had only taken 6 hours. By the time Jaemin had found the key, crinkled and bent at the very bottom of a chest, he remembers owning from his very first year of practicing magic alone. When he had returned to the main room of the shop, Mark had already locked up the front door and shut the windows, moving all the displays to a corner of the room and pulling out the cots he and Jaemin slept in. He had also managed to revive the fire and cook what smelt like a decent dinner. Maybe Jaemin thinks, he didn't mind having him around after all. 

"What's all this?" Jaemin mused as he approached the table He and Mark dinned at. In front of him, there was a spread of food. Lamb chops seasoned with rosemary and cracked pepper, a bowl of roasted vegetables, and finally a large loaf of Jaemin's favorite bread. "Surely, you didn't cook all this?" Jaemin said teasingly, softly pushing Mark's shoulder.

"I did!" Mark whined, scrunching his face up in annoyance. "I'm not the same kid everyone remembers me as centuries ago! I learned how to cook when I got kicked out of wizarding school!" Jaemin wanted to laugh but held it in. The wizarding school was a sore subject for Mark after all. Laughing at him would probably lead to a toad in his bedsheets, and truthfully Jaemin isn't in the mood for a prank war with his houseguest. 

Without further hesitation, Jaemin slid into the seat across from Mark; eager to consume the delicious looking meal. Jaemin picks up a fork hurridly and uses it to bring one of the tender lamb chops to the empty plate in front of him. Mark grins at him as he shovels the first piece into his mouth. "This is so good!" Jaemin chirped happily in between bites. "You weren't kidding, Mark! You actually learned how to cook!"

Mark scoffed and rolled his eyes but didn't answer. Instead, he busied himself with plating the vegetables and giving them both a slice of bread. Jaemin smiles graciously at the elder before continuing to eat, completely tuning the world out in favor of enjoying the meal before him. He didn't stop his mind from slipping into thoughts of the towns boy from the café and thoughts of how the love potion he intended to make would make the human finally swoon. 

It wasn't until after the plates had been cleared, and they packed away the leftover bread that one of them spoke again. "Where did you find the time to go get bread?" Jaemin asked quizically, thinking of the crips and flakey loaf they had eaten half of together. 

"I went out about an hour after you disappeared." Mark grunted as he retrieved the thick quilts they used to wrap up nightly. "I went to the cafe about half an hour's walk from here." Mark hands Jaemin his signature quilt before taking his own to his cot opposite of Jaemin's. Jaemin nodded in understanding, slowly unfolding his quilt and spreading it over his sleeping place.

"You know that's where the boy from earlier works," Jaemin spoke up as he turned to Mark. Mark was climbing into bed and paused briefly. "The young guy? brown hair?" Mark asked, half-interested now. Jaemin nodded his head, biting his lip to keep from smiling at the memory of the boy's good looks. "That's the one." Jaemin sang in a sing-song voice as he got into his bed. Adjusting the blankets and stiff pillow under his head. 

"He was pretty," Mark mused, eyes closing tightly. Jaemin knows he does this when he tries to think hard while tired. "He seemed to about 20, right? I didn't stay for long, but he seemed just like the normal type to fall for your antics." Mark was right; he is the exact type who always fall for Jaemin by just one look, so why hadn't he? In what world did Jaemin wake up in where his famous spell casting did not affect a person, much less a 20 something commoner. 

Jaemin let out a dry laugh in agreement, looking away from Mark and towards the ceiling of his shop and home. "I thought he might have been a royal for a few moments," Jaemin admitted in embarrassment. Across from him Mark snorts loudly, clearly just as amused at the thought at Jaemin had been. 

"A royal working in a local cafe?" Mark said, tone full of teasing, a slight hint of warmness hiding in his voice. "That makes perfect sense! Of course, a member of the royal family would be working at a lowly cafe, that's much more possible than the possibility that your magic capabilities have finally met their match." Jaemin sighs loudly at Mark’s words. The young man at the cafe may not be royal, but certainly, Jaemin has not met his match; he just needs a better potion. 

"Whatever Mark, once I perfect this potion I have in the works, even you won't be able to deny my heavenly features." Jaemin teases, trying his best to sound sickly sweet. Despite his words, he hopes that Mark has enough magic and will power to deny even the strongest of love spells. Just the idea of having such an odd wizard like Mark pinning after him was enough to make Jaemin shudder. 

Pushing these thoughts out of his mind Jaemin tried to relax into his sleeping cot. Maybe he'll just wait until Mark is long gone before he uses the potion. It would be a lot more favorable than the possibility of complicating his closest and oldest friendship with something as fickle as magic induced love. 

With this resolution Jaemin closes his eye and drifts into a dreamless sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all so much for reading the first chapter of my new story. This is probably gonna be the shortest out of all the chapters moving forward tbh. 
> 
> Now that I got that out of the way I’ll explain this story a bit... basically I actually started writing this story some time in late 2017??? And like the first half of so if this chapter was actually written in 2017 as just an idea and while I was reading through some old drafts I found it and fell in love with what I had written and decided to finish it. 
> 
> Originally this was planned to be an one shot? Believe it or not. In 2017 when I had originally written the begging I had intended this to be a fairly short one shot where Jaemin won Haechan over the old fashion way but when I ended up working on this work again I kinda dreamt up a whole universe for these characters and I now have a whole as book on my hands 🤭
> 
> Also I’ve changed the ending to this about 1000 times. I was actually planning on trolling everyone by writing a long ass book pretending Jaemin and Haechan were the main relationship only for Jaemin and Mark to fall in love at the end but I just recently decided to stick with the intended ship haha. While magical gay Jaemin and Mark was really tempting I think they work better as friends in this particular fic.
> 
> Anyways now that I’ve ranted like no tomorrow I’d like to thank you again for reading! I’ll see you in the next chapter everyone!!!


End file.
